


Ice Blue Blur: Open Your Heart

by Lord_West_Gordon



Series: Ice Blue Blur [1]
Category: Frozen (2013)
Genre: Alternate Canonverse, Alternate Universe - Supernatural Elements, Chaos Emeralds, F/F, F/M, Multiverse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-13
Updated: 2017-04-02
Packaged: 2018-09-24 01:17:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 17,775
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9693494
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lord_West_Gordon/pseuds/Lord_West_Gordon
Summary: In his way to a new life in the far north of the World, Jason Ryan Smith witnesses the rescue of a man who brings the news of the death of the king and the queen of Arendelle. But when he brought the news to the Crown Princess Elsa, he did not imagine that a story of epic proportions was about to begin. Multiverse, with a complex and intense story, this is the first book in a set of five. Ship to be revealed very soon - NOT OC/Elsa.Alternate canonverse and Multiverse, with some supernatural elements.





	1. Castaway

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Walard](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Walard/gifts).



> Disclaimer: all the characters, locations and itens in this work are trademarked by Disney, Sega and Ubisoft, unless noted otherwise. All original characters, if not related to existing characters, are owned by the author.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: all the characters, locations and items in this work are trademarked by Disney, Sega and Ubisoft, unless noted otherwise. All original characters, if not related to existing characters, are owned by the author.

The sun had just risen over the horizon, and the majority of the people already awake on the ship were the sailors.

There was only one exception: a man, covered with a brown leather jacket, with a hood over his head to protect himself from the biting cold that pushed the vessel towards the most northern point of the world. He was leaning over the ship's rail, which was very unusual: the majority of the passengers of a ship like the Sea Diamond, who had zero experience as sailors, preferred to stay on the lower deck, where their cabins were located.

However, the last thing he wanted was to be confined: it brought back bad memories of the last twelve months. Twelve bloody months in which he had been locked up, with almost no space to move, and unable to see the sunlight, something he missed a lot.

The sight of the rising sun, alone, was a good reason for Jason Ryan Smith to be awake at 5a.m. on the Sea Diamond's rail.

"Good morning, Mr. Smith", greeted a voice, causing him to wince. Only after he turned around to see the voice's owner, did Jason allow himself to relax: it was the ship's captain, a tall and slightly overweight man with white hair who had already seen everything in the forty years he had sailed throughout the kingdoms of the world.

Although he was a gentle and kind man, Captain Jonathan Rose knew how to be hard and demanding with his men when it was necessary, because there was no other way to survive on the sea; commanding the Sea Diamondfor more than twenty years, he was a man loved by his crew, which earned him the distinction of not being the target of a single mutiny during all those years - a rare feat among the Royal Navy of Corona.

"Good morning, Captain Rose, I didn't know that you were already awake", replied the passenger, politely.

"Well, Mr. Smith, as the captain of this solemn vessel, it's my duty to see that everything is alright on all the decks, I don't want to be caught off-guard."

Jason forced a chuckle. "I understand, Captain."

"Anyways, I hope that there's not a problem in asking, but what are you doing here at this hour on deck, my son? I thought you would be following the example of other passengers and sleeping a little more before breakfast."

The hooded man held in a sigh - he knew that sharing his pain was good for the soul, but at that moment, the last thing he wanted was to share the images that haunted his nightmares.

Still, there was no harm in telling the truth - he just needed to be succinct.

"Nightmares," said the young man, playing with his hood. "I woke up a little more than an hour ago from a particularly bad one, and I couldn't sleep anymore, no matter how I tried."

"I understand, not everyone can sleep in peace, particularly on the high seas," said the captain, leaning on the ship's rail. "But anyways, today will be a long day. Maybe you can take a nap after lunch, Mr. Smith. Our cook decided to prepare a recipe he learned in Soleanna, a dish called ... lasagna."

"I know that dish, my mother made it when I was little," said Jason, which earned him a watchful eye of Captain Rose. "I'm not from Soleanna, but my mom's from there, and even after she married my dad, she kept some traditions, like the original lasagna."

"So you should know how very heavy this food is, no?"

"Certainly!", laughed the young man, while playing with the edge of the hood. "My father could never spend all afternoon awake after eating a plate of lasagna, so it would be no surprise if all the passengers decided to take a nap later ... unless there is a Soleannaean on the ship."

"No, my boy," said Rose, after a brief chuckle. "Almost all the passengers are from Corona, or Arendelle, or even the..."

"MAN OVERBOARD!"

The cry of one of the sailors, coming directly from the bow of the ship, made Jonathan Rose interrupt the pleasant conversation and run in direction of his subordinate, with Jason on his heels.

"Captain, there's a man clinging to a piece of wood about a mile away from here," said the sailor the moment Rose entered his earshot range. "I can't say for sure, but he's not doing very well from what I can see."

"Is he injured, any blood?"

"No bleeding, sir, otherwise he would have attracted all the sharks within a mile, and there would be nothing left of him."

"Well done, prepare the boat and call two men to accompany the rescue, Williamson. Jenkins, go call the doctor and tell him that, unless his patient is having a heart attack right now, to drop whatever he's doing and come to the deck immediately", shouted the captain to another sailor who was approaching him - he nodded and turned back before running at full speed towards the lower decks.

Jason was shocked to feel the strong hand of Jonathan on his shoulder. With a rueful expression, the captain began to speak. "Mr. Smith, I know this may be asking too much of a passenger, but you are fluent in several languages. As we don't know the nationality of our castaway, you could stick around me as our translator?"

"Yes, Captain, there's no problem with that."

Rose sighed in relief - it was one less problem to deal with.

In a matter of minutes, the boat commanded by Williamson left the Sea Diamond toward the man, who was still adrift at sea, clinging to a piece of wood as if his life depended on it.

Jason, Captain Rose and some crew members and passengers who had left their beds observed Williamson and his colleagues approach the castaway and rescue him carefully from the piece of wood. Even from a distance, it was possible to notice that the man was weakened - as the region had been affected by storms until the previous day, it appeared that he had been there for at least twenty-four hours without food and only drinking water from the rain, if it had rained since.

"Did you call me, Captain?" A new voice asked, approaching the men who were leaning against the Sea Diamond's railing. Jason turned and saw a man in a white coat and gloves in his hands - a doctor.

"Yes, Dr. Petersen. Our sailors have found a castaway a league from here, I sent Williamson, Dittmer, and Brendel to rescue him. Mr. Smith is accompanying the rescue as a translator, since we do not know the nationality of the man. "

"Alright, I've already separated the instruments for work, if need be."

"Captain, the boat is already coming back, should I prepare the ropes?"

"Yes, Reitz, take Jenkins to help you with the winch. Dr. Petersen, Mr. Smith, come with me, every second is precious now. "

Nodding in agreement, both the doctor and Jason followed Captain Rose to the section of the ship where all the lifeboats were concentrated - except for one, which was being used at that moment.

Taking a deep breath, Jason tried to calm himself down - it would do no good to use his traditional remedy to quell his anxiety, not only because of the limited space and the ocean around him, but because it would also be difficult to explain to the captain how he could do that.

His ability, considered by some a blessing, and by others a curse. Which had caught the attention of the doctor, and resulted in the imprisonment of his family by the King's army.

He was not willing to return to the hell from where he had escaped.

"Captain, we're ready to go up, the man we rescued, he ... he's very cold, I don't know if he'll survive," announced the sailor, whom Jason recognized by his voice as Williamson.

"Guys, you heard him! Get the boat up quickly, we're out of time!", shouted the captain, ordering the other sailors to pull the boat into the ship - in a matter of minutes, Williamson and his two colleagues left the boat, carrying a man wearing a tattered green leather military uniform.

The soldier's skin was very pale, Jason did not know if it was because of the lack of food, the cold or the excess of time in the seawater - a question answered by Dr. Petersen, after picking up his instruments and analyzing the man's body.

Several minutes passed, and the expectation of everyone surrounding the doctor and patient increased. The soldier, Jason noted, seemed to be breathing heavily.

"Well Doctor, what does he have?", asked Captain Rose.

"Severe hypothermia, Captain," the doctor replied, with a sigh of despondency, as he stored the instruments in a suitcase. "In addition, he apparently has several broken ribs, one of which is close to the lungs. If he stays on the ship for more than a day, we will not be able to save him. How far is the nearest port?"

"Two days," replied Rose, regretfully. "We were already at the end of the trip to the Royal City of Arendelle, and there are no more ports along the way, not even one with almost nonexistent medical conditions."

"What is his nationality, sir? Maybe he can tell you what happened?"

With Petersen's comment, Rose went and knelt beside the soldier, searching his ruined uniform for clues.

The captain's eyes widened at the sight of a small brooch affixed to the breastplate of his uniform - it was golden, with a violet stone in the center, and shaped like a crocus, the national flower of Arendelle. Which meant that the castaway was...

"By all the gods of the pantheon, this man is a Royal Guard!", exclaimed Rose loudly.

A collective murmur spread through the ship, and Jason knew the reason - the Royal Guards were Arendelle's elite force, charged, first, with the protection of the Royal Family.

But that did not explain why a Royal Guard appeared out of nowhere in the middle of the ocean, clutching a piece of a ship.

"Mr. Smith, now it's your turn. Please find out what happened", Captain Rose said, turning to Jason, who swallowed hard before approaching the doctor, the sailor, and the shipwrecked man, all with their eyes on the traveler. It was then that the soldier spoke for the first time since he arrived on the ship.

[["Please remove the hood ... I have to know who I'm talking to."]]

Nodding, Jason reached for his hood and pulled it off his head ... revealing royal blue hair that reached his neck.

[["My name is Jason Ryan Smith, and I am a traveler from Westside Island, on the way to Arendelle... Who are you, and what happened?"]]

[["I am Thomas Berget, Lieutenant Colonel of the Royal Guard of Arendelle... I was aboard HMAS Vålerenga, returning from a state voyage to the Republic of Spagonia with Their Majesties, King Agdar and Queen Idunn, when our ship was hit this dawn by a storm…"]]

That was all the Royal Guard was able to say about before he had a violent cough. Holding him carefully so as not to hurt him, Jason patted him lightly on the back until Berget stopped coughing.

[["And what happened to the ship, Lieutenant Berget?"]]

[["We tried to take the Vålerenga out of the storm, but a rogue wave caused the ship to be thrown to the side. I was trying to pull down the sails with my colleagues when I was hit, and thrown into the sea, and saw another wave split the boat in half, throwing several of my mates into the ocean."]]

[["And the king and the queen?"]]

[["They... they went to the rail, and threw a bottle with a message inside, before they approached me and handed me a leather pouch, with strict instructions to deliver it to Lord Chamberlain Kai. That's when I was called in to collect the sails, and the first wave struck the ship."]]

[["So ... they died?"]]

[["I'm afraid so, Mr. Smith…"]], he replied, before coughing again. Except to the horror of Jason, Rose, and Petersen, Berget began to cough blood.

Which meant that his lung had been pierced by the broken rib - meaning that he had only a few minutes to live.

"Go on, Mr. Smith, before it's too late!", cried the doctor urgently, causing Jason to turn back to Berget. [["Lieutenant, I…"]]

[["Mr. Smith, I'm going to die, isn't it?"]]

Jason nodded. Carefully, Berget indicated a pocket in the ripped uniform - the blue-haired traveler took his hand to the indicated spot and took out a greenish-colored leather bag with the crocus symbol. Even with the sunlight, it was possible to see a strong violet glow coming from inside the package.

[[Then I must say at once what I know, before it is too late... this bag contains the supreme jewel of Arendelle, who, according to the legend, was delivered by the gods to the first Frossen, and which is always owned by the ruling king or queen. So, I need you to go to the castle and deliver the jewel to Princess Elsa. I'm entrusting this heirloom to you, but I need you to promise me that you will go to the castle.]]

[[But... but, I...]]

[[Promise, please!], Berget asked, coughing more blood. [[I do not know what kind of jewel this is, but the king told me that the princess will need it to rule.]]

[[All right, Lieutenant Berget, I promise.]]

The Arendellian's eyes shone with gratitude. It was the last thing he did before he suffered a violent cough, coughing more blood until he stopped coughing, moving - breathing.

"Rest in peace, and find the absolution you dreamed of," muttered Captain Rose, as Jason carefully closed Berget's eyes.

A mournful silence settled among everyone on the deck of the Sea Diamond, watching Berget's body, pale and covered in blood, in the arms of the Westside Island traveler.

"Mr. Smith, sorry to interrupt you, but I... I need to prepare his body", murmured Dr. Petersen, ducking down to Jason's level, his green eyes overflowing with unshed tears.

He was so overwhelmed by his emotions that he did not even notice when two sailors, at the request of the ship's doctor, removed Berget's body. It was only when Rose nudged him on the shoulder that the traveler came out of the "trance".

"Mr. Smith, what... what did he say?"

Jason swallowed hard, before answering, as tears streamed down his scarred face.

"The king and queen of Arendelle are dead."

 **"What?!"** exclaimed the captain, his face taking on an upset look almost immediately.

"They died... victims of a storm."

Immediately, Captain Rose ordered all the sails to be unfurled, so that they would travel to the Royal City as soon as possible. Meanwhile, Jason, still overwhelmed, headed for his cabin; as soon as he got there, he threw himself on the bed, unable to believe it was not even eight o'clock in the morning - and he was already more tired than he could imagine.

He did not even want to imagine the amount of trouble on his hands: to go to Arendelle's castle and tell Princess Elsa - wouldn't she be queen now?, he thought - that her parents were dead.

And he still had the jewelry to deliver, at Berget's request.

Slowly he lifted the leather pouch over his head, and wondered what the Arendellian royalty's jewel would look like. For a few seconds he had a debate in his head about whether or not to see the gem. On the one hand, it had been entrusted to him, on the other, it was owned by the royal family of Arendelle.

In the end, his curiosity won the battle, and he decided to see the jewel with his own eyes.

Opening the package, Jason noticed that the violet glow he had seen on the deck increased exponentially, illuminating the cabin completely. Flipping the leather bag upside down, a violet stone, the size of the palm of his hand and sculpted like a diamond, fell on the bed.

Jason's stomach jerked with pure terror.

That stone... was just like the one hidden in his luggage. The only difference was that the color of the gem in his possession was white, not violet.

Quickly, he hurried to his luggage and rolled up his clothes until he found the box he had managed to steal from the Doctor before escaping. It was really a stone of the same kind as had been entrusted to him.

A Chaos Emerald.

"By the gods, what else is going to happen?" Jason murmured, looking incredulously at the two emeralds on the bed.

Little did he know that much was yet to come.

* * *

 

Two hours later, Jason left his cabin and returned to the deck; Some sailors were wiping the blood off the floor while Rose was near the bow of the ship, holding a pigeon in his hands.

As he made his way to the captain, Jason could see a small piece of parchment, sealed and tied to the bird's leg.

"What happened, Captain?", Jason asked as Rose released the pigeon into the air toward the royal city.

"I sent a message to the Lord Chamberlain, informing him that we have news of HMAS Vålerenga, and requesting an audience with Princess Elsa, now the future Queen. I imagine there will be a carriage waiting for us at the port of the Royal City."

"We? This means that..."

"Yes, Mr. Smith, I'm sorry to abuse your goodwill, but I need you to come with me to the audience as a translator, since my Norwegian is not very good. Besides, you talked to the man, so …"

"No, Captain, that's fine. In addition, Lieutenant Colonel Berget asked me to go to the castle, to deliver something to the princess."

"If it's not too much trouble, may I ask what he delivered to you?"

Jason pondered what he was supposed to say - he knew he could not escape with the answer "sorry, but I can not tell," because even Berget had not required him to keep it a secret. Also, he knew he could not talk too much about the Chaos Emeralds, as this might bring unwanted questions about his past with the Doctor.

So he decided to stick to the words of the late lieutenant colonel.

"According to Berget, what I have received is the supreme jewel of Arendelle, entrusted to him by the king before being swept by a wave and thrown into the sea. According to him, this jewel has been with the royal family since the beginning of time, and should stay with the king or queen in power. So he asked me to give the jewel to the princess."

"I understand. Well, I'm even afraid of what might happen at this hearing, they say the princess is not exactly sociable."

"Because?"

"Well... she's an only child, you know? She had a younger sister, who died as a child, and has not left the castle much since then, so she is not accustomed to contact with strangers. In addition, there are rumors that she has magical powers."

This caught Jason's attention - ever since he was a child, he was certain that he was the only human with some superhuman trait from birth. But if what Rose was suggesting was true, then he was not alone.

And what guaranteed that there weren't more special people?

"Well, the rumors are that she has absolute control over snow and ice, which comes in handy for a country that is covered in snow for six to ten months a year, and which has ice as one of its main export products."

"Wow... she must be a very special person."

"I think so. I just hope she can handle the sad news we're bringing."

"I hope so, Captain ... I know the pain of losing parents, even if they are alive…"

"What do you mean, Mr. Smith?"

Jason took a deep breath before replying, "I'm going to Arendelle to apply for political asylum from the princess."

Seeing Captain Rose's eyes widen, the blue-haired boy quickly explained what had happened on Westside Island a year ago - he just left out his season in the doctor's lab.

"By all gods…" murmured Rose, surprised. "I thought all the refugees had gone to Soleanna and Corona."

"Yes, but I had a feeling... a strange feeling, so to speak, that my place would be in no other country but Arendelle. Now, I'll find out if I'm right or not depending on the mood of the princess."

Neither of them said anything else. Instead, they leaned against the bulwark of the bow, looking out over the icy sea of that icy autumn morning, watching the little icebergs on their way to the Arendelle.

They could only pray that the future queen would not adhere to the old custom of killing messengers of bad news.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author Note: Well, thank you very much for reading the first chapter of Ice Blue Blur: Open Your Heart. I hope you really enjoyed this story, because it was very fun to write this piece of work.
> 
> Maybe you are considering who Jason Ryan Smith is... don't worry, you will have an explanation in a few chapters. And it's a very challenging piece of work - I'm a Brazilian, so, first, I write in Portuguese, and only after that do I translate it to English (with the help of doctor Google). Thanks a lot, by the way, to Walard and Striga for proofreading this work!
> 
> And, before I forget, this is NOT an OC/Elsa ship - the main couple will be revealed very soon.
> 
> I don't have the slightest idea how many chapters this fic will have, but... I hope you favorite it, follow it, and review it.
> 
> Bye!


	2. An Unexpected Journey

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: all the characters, locations and itens in this work are trademarked by Disney, Sega and Ubisoft, unless noted otherwise. All original characters, if not related to existing characters, are owned by the author.

Two days later, the crew and passengers of Sea Diamond were able to see the huge fjord that framed the landscape of the Royal City of Arendelle.   
  
It was undoubtedly a spectacle for the tired travelers, exhausted of all the sea and icebergs.   
  
But for Jason Ryan Smith, it was the gateway to what promised to be one of the most intense days of his twenty years of life.   
  
Thomas Berget's body was protected in a coffin in the cargo compartment - after, of course, undergoing an embalming process to prevent the body from rotting after two days.   
  
Although it was common to have a burial at sea for rescued castaways who died, Berget's military status made that point out of the question. In addition, he was also the only person to have reported the history of the HMAS Vålerenga sinking, and his body would serve as evidence in an inquiry into the incident.   
  
“Mr. Smith?”   
  
Jason turned his head to see Captain Rose approaching, a piece of parchment in his hand. “How can I help you, Captain?”   
  
“I just got a message from Lord Kai. He said a carriage will be waiting for us on the docks, and six guards will escort us to the castle.”   
  
“So ... does he already know what happened?”   
  
Rose took a deep breath for five seconds before answering. “No.” Before Jason could protest, he spoke again. “I don’t believe this is the kind of news that should be announced through a mail pigeon, Mr. Smith. It would be a lack of respect not only for the status of the future queen, but also for the memory of the royal couple.”   
  
“Alright, Captain, I understand.”   
  
“Is your luggage ready yet?”   
  
“Yes, it’s there”, answered the young man, pointing to a few small bags at his feet. “And the supreme jewel is inside the leather pouch Berget gave me, it’s over there”, he added, pointing to the pouch that was tied to the pants he wore.   
  
“Very well then, we’ll anchor in twenty minutes, we'll also be the first to descend."   
  
And in fact, twenty minutes later, the Sea Diamond was anchored at the port of Arendelle. Seeing a ramp being placed near the ship's rail by a group of men, Jason took his bag and, trying to gather his nerves in place, approached the captain, who was already putting his first foot on the ramp.   
  
A few yards away, a carriage with Arendelle's coat of arms was waiting for them, guarded by half a dozen guards, holding shields in one hand and spears in the other; each one of them had a sword fastened to their waist, ready to be drawn at the slightest sign of danger.   
  
They all wore the same green leather uniform Berget had worn, which indicated that they belonged to the Royal Guard; The difference was that these uniforms were in good condition.   
  
At the foot of the carriage was a tall, fat man with a huge nose and his remaining hair scattered to the sides and behind his head; He wore an elegant green suit with a crocus brooch pinned to his lapel over a beige shirt. He had a piece of parchment wrapped in his hands, and seemed to be waiting for someone.   
  
As soon as he watched Jason and Captain Rose walk down the ramp, the man began to walk toward them, which made the soldiers raise their spears.   
  
"Captain Rose and Mr. Smith, I presume." said the man, in impeccable English, as he stood very close to them, and held out his right hand to the pair.

“Yes, I am Captain Jonathan Rose, of the Sea Diamond, and this is Jason Ryan Smith, passenger and temporary translator, and the person who spoke to Thomas Berget”, the captain explained as he shook hands with the man, being followed by Jason.   
  
“My name is Kai, and I am the Lord Chamberlain of the castle. But where is Lieutenant Berget?”   
  
Jason looked from Captain Rose to Kai and back to the captain, before swallowing; the old sea-wolf, apparently, had said nothing,  _ absolutely nothing _ , about the shipwreck of HMAS Vålerenga and about Berget's death.   
  
Rose, in turn, glanced sideways at Jason before turning to Kai. “Maybe it would be better to explain what happened inside the carriage.”   
  
Nodding in agreement, Kai led the sailor and the exile into the carriage. As soon as the vehicle began to move, the soldiers around her hurried to follow her.   
  
For Jason, riding in a closed carriage like that, pulled by a quartet of horses, was very strange - at his house on Westside Island, his family carriage was open, and when he, his younger sister and his parents used the vehicle, it was pleasing to feel the wind in his hair, in the middle of the tropical climate of the island’s coast.   
  
Glancing quickly at Rose, Jason could see that the captain was not completely percent comfortable either - which the blue-haired boy suspected had to do with his being accustomed to the Sea Diamond. The only one that seemed to be completely at ease in the carriage was Kai.   
  
“Well, now that we're on our way to the castle... what happened?”   
  
Jason and Rose looked at each other for a second; the captain nodded before turning to Kai.   
  
“Well, it all started two days ago…”   
  
And Rose explained everything, from the moment they spotted Thomas Berget floating in the sea, clutching the wreckage of HMAS Vålerenga, going through the rescue, the report of the shipwreck made for Jason, the death of the king and the queen - which made Kai, who already have naturally white skin, became even paler -, the supreme jewel and the death of Berget.   
  
“By all the gods…” whispered Kai as soon as Rose finished her story. “I cannot even begin to imagine the princess's reaction when she learns of this.”   
  
Rose and Jason looked at each other again in surprise. What was the Lord Chamberlain trying to say?   
  
“Well, let me explain”, said Kai, looking at the exile and the old sea-wolf. “Princess Elsa ... since she was born, she has control over ice and snow.”   
  
“Yeah, we already knew about the rumors”, commented Jason, glancing sideways at Westphalian-style houses - some were residences, others were shops of the most varied styles, from food and cleaning materials to jewelry stores.   
  
“But it's not rumors, it's facts”, Kai replied, in a harder tone than he intended. “Sorry, Mr. Smith, it’s just that it's not easy having to deal with this news. Anyways... Her Highness was one when her younger sister was born, Princess Anna. However, when they were five and four years old, respectively…”   
  
Kai fell silent. Jason noticed that whatever had happened was a very heavy subject, especially considering what Rose had told him on the ship: that the future queen had a younger sister who had died as a child.   
  
_ This was Princess Anna? _ , thought the exile.   
  
“No one knows exactly what happened... what I do know is that the two princesses were playing in the castle hall in the middle of the night when there was an accident. A soldier, unfortunately I can not remember his name... wait!”, cried Kai, looking closely at Jason. “How old are you, Mr. Smith?”   
  
“What?”, asked the exile, surprised at the sudden change of subject.   
  
“Answer me, now!” Exclaimed the Lord Chamberlain, forcefully.   
  
“Twenty, sir”, the young man replied, still trying to contain the surprise. “I’m twenty-years old since last June.”   
  
“Ah…” Kai murmured, assuming the expression of a balloon being emptied. “I'm sorry, is that... Mr. Smith, this is going to sound weird, but the soldier I'm talking about was a lot like you.”   
  
“WHAT?”   
  
“Yes, he was literally the same as you, except he was a few years older... Anyway, I'm sorry, I thought you could be him.”

“No, all right, I understand…”, Jason muttered, pondering what he had just heard... if what Kai was saying was true, then this man... was his father.   
  
His father.   
  
Two words that made his heart ache. Not for the reasons everyone would imagine, but for reasons only he and his family knew.   
  
It was undoubtedly an unimaginable pain.   
  
“Anyways”, resumed the Lord Chamberlain, plucking Jason from his thoughts. “The fact is that this soldier appeared with Princess Anna wounded in his arms, followed by a princess Elsa completely inconsolable. Their Majesties, King Agdar and Queen Idunn, left the castle with the girls that very night, towards the North Mountain. They came back only the next morning, with Elsa... and Anna's body wrapped in a linen sheet; she had died at dawn.”   
  
Jason felt his heart break in a million pieces.   
  
“After the funeral and burial of Princess Anna, the king closed the gates of the castle for about two years, while the royal family was in mourning. But even after the end of that period, Princess Elsa... she appeared a few times outside the castle, I dare say she never overcame completely the mourning for her younger sister's death.”   
  
Jason did not know what to say. He did not really know.   
  
“That is why I ask that we be careful when we give the news to Her Highness, I can not measure the size of the pain she will feel.”   
  
“I see, my Lord,” Rose agreed, speaking for the first time in several minutes. “Perhaps it is best that you start speaking, and Mr. Smith and myself will only speak if requested”, the captain added, with both Kai and Jason agreeing.   
  
None of them spoke for the rest of the trip; Jason took the rest of the ride to look at the bustling streets of Arendelle City, filled with people working and shopping in the morning sunlight.   
  
He seized the quiet moment to put the leather bag with the supreme jewel - the Chaos Emerald - in his bag, along with the rest of his luggage.   
  
Then, as he looked around the city, a massive construction entered his field of view. It was a huge castle, old-fashioned, surrounded by huge walls; these, in turn, were surrounded by water on all sides, transforming the place into the definition of a man-made island - except for a bridge linking the castle to the rest of Arendelle City. At various points on the wall, the crocus coat of arms framed the towers, making it clear what the purpose of the castle was.   
  
This was the residence of the Royal Family of Arendelle, now composed of a single member.   
  
As the carriage approached the castle, the exile wondered if the future queen would accept his claim for political asylum. After all, she needed good reason to accept it, and he had an intuition that she would know if he was lying at some point in his story.   
  
And he could say, at least to himself, that he had done things he was not proud of during his escape from the old Doctor's laboratory. The gods knew that he had had innumerable nightmares during his travel from Westside to Arendelle - he could still hear the screams of those men, he could smell the metallic blood that he had shed, feel the dying atmosphere that had fallen in laboratory.   
  
It was at this moment of the journey that he felt himself leave the present moment, his body, his soul, himself.   
  
It was as if he were traveling to another world.   
  


* * *

_ He was in a ballroom filled with elegantly dressed men and women, who sipped glasses of champagne and chatted merrily; some couples waltzed in the center of the room, lulled by lively music played by the orchestra. _

__   
_ As he looked at himself, Jason was surprised to see that he was as elegant as the other people in that hall - he wore a white coat and pants with black leather shoes, and the chest of his coat was with two decorations that he knew were presented to Westside Island’s military heroes. _ __   
__   
_ He didn’t know why he was wearing them - they were not only owned by his father, but had disappeared during the invasion. _ __   
__   
_ But that was not important at the moment. What mattered was finding out where he was, and what was happening. _ __   
__   
_ Looking around the room, two things caught the exile's attention: first, the crocus coat of arms was on the wall, which indicated where he was - in Arendelle. _ __   
__   
_ Where, exactly, he did not know yet, but he could say right away that it was a rather luxurious place, not only because of the people who were there, but due to the decoration: armor, beautiful pictures of men and women wearing expensive clothes and stained glass with the crocus design. _ __   
__   
_ The second thing that had attracted attention was the presence of a young girl in her early twenties with blonde-platinum hair wrapped in a tight braid and wearing a teal dress with black sleeves and the coat of crocus on the bodice, plus a purple cape - the royal color. _ __   
__   
_ A golden tiara adorned the top of her head - which implied that she, whoever she was, was a member of royalty. _ __   
__   
_ Gathering the details of what was around him, Jason already suspected who she was. _ __   
__   
_ However, an excited shout confirmed his suspicions. _ __   
__   
_ “Elsa!”, exclaimed a young woman in about eighteen years old, with strawberry-blonde hair wrapped in two twin braids; she wore a pretty green dress, similar to the one worn by the other girl, though in less detail. She was accompanied by a man with red hair and sideburns (who Jason found disturbing), wearing clothes similar to the his own: white coat and pants, with several medals affixed to the chest of his coat. _ __   
__   
_ That made Jason's stomach twist in fear. _ __   
__   
_ Those were military decorations of the Southern Isles. _ __   
__   
_ The country that had invaded and conquered Westside Island. _ __   
__   
_ That had imprisoned Jason, his parents and his sister, as well as the royal family and thousands of soldiers and citizens of his island. _ __   
__   
_ And that had made him spend a year in hell. _ __   
__   
_ The exile remembered the last time he had seen the man - it was impossible to forget the arrogant air on his face when he and his brothers saw Jason and his family being placed in a prison carriage, linked to two pairs of horses, at the entrance of their house on Westside Island. _ __   
__   
_ Prince Hans of the Southern Isles. _ __   
__   
_ Jason tried to figure out what was happening: he knew he was not there, at this ball, but in the carriage with Rose and Kai, on the way to this very castle. He also knew that he was not wearing an elegant outfit with his father's military decorations, but the clothes and cloak he had taken from his house, dodging the vigilance of the Southern Isles’ soldiers, before continuing incognito to the port of Westside Island, where he had arranged - not 100% honestly - a passage to Avalor, where he boarded another ship bound for Corona, and then taken a vessel to the Royal City of Arendelle. _ __   
__   
_ At the sound of Elsa's voice - the queen, he remembered - Jason forced himself to turn off his thoughts as to how he had gotten there and paid attention to the conversation. _ __   
__   
_ “What happened, Anna?”, she asked in a neutral tone. _ __   
__   
Anna? That's not the name of  _ \- Jason shut up inwardly. After all, Kai had said, minutes ago, that Princess Anna of Arendelle had died years before. So how was she there, arm in arm with a prince from the Southern Isles? _ __   
__   
_ The exile turned his attention to Anna - she was ecstatic, as if she had received an offer that was beyond reproach. Her teal eyes shone so bright that Jason wondered what might have happened. _ __   
__   
_ “We wanted…”, Anna began, ecstatic but also slightly insecure. _ __   
__   
_ “...your blessing…”, Hans continued, apparently as ecstatic as the girl - though the Westside Island’s exile knew from experience how the prince was able to mask his true feelings. _ __   
_   
_ _ “... _ **_for our marriage_ ** __!”, exclaimed the two at the same time.

_ Jason had to use all his willpower not to let his jaw drop. That could only be a bad taste joke, right? After all, who, in their right mind, would marry a monster like Prince Hans? _

_ Apparently, Elsa was thinking something like that: she was as shocked as Jason, her mouth slightly gaping and her eyes empty. She stayed that way for about ten seconds, before speaking again. _

_ “Ma... marriage?” _

_ “Don’t worry, we have time to prepare the invitations for his family too…”, Anna rambled, not paying any attention to Elsa's less than happy reaction. _

_ “Yes, there are twelve brothers, besides my parents,” Hans commented. _

_ “And we also have to start preparations, maybe give time to get married in the fall…” _

_ “Sister…” Elsa began, catching Jason's attention - this confirmed his suspicion that the strawberry-blonde-haired girl was really Princess Anna (though she was not dead - but Jason left that detail for later, focused as he was in the conversation). “May I talk to you, please? Alone?” _

_ “No, whatever you have to say, you - you can say to both of us”, replied the princess. With a weary sigh, Elsa went straight to the point. _

_ “Very well, in that case... There will be no marriage!” _

_ “Wait, what?” Anna asked, moving from excitement to shock, and then to disappointment in two seconds. Taking a deep breath, Elsa tried to explain the situation: _

_ “Anna, you can’t marry a man you just met.” _

_ “But, Elsa... it's true love, don’t you understand?” _

_ “Anna, what do you know about true love?”, countered the queen, trying to prove a point - but attracting an angry response from her sister. _

_ "More than you. All you can do is drive people away." _

_ Jason flinched at the princess' statement; well, he was not quite sure what was happening, but he did not need to be a genius to say that no matter what the reason was, the response had been quite violent. _

_ “No, Anna, you just met him! I understand you might have fallen in love, but... getting married? No, no, no, you will not have my blessing!” _ __   
__   
_ “Your Majesty…” Hans began to speak, but Elsa raised her hand to keep him from continuing. _ __   
__   
_ “No, do not even start. You wanted my blessing, and the answer is no.” With that, she turned and walked over to a man dressed elegantly in butler clothes - which Jason recognized as Kai. Straining his ears and approaching as discreetly as possible, the blue-haired man heard the platinum-blond-haired monarch say, “Close the gates, the party is over.” _ __   
__   
_ Hans bent to mutter something in Anna's ear, but the girl jerked away from him and advanced to Elsa as she was beginning to walk toward the throne. As soon as she held the glove that covered the queen's hand, it was pulled; Elsa let out an almost inaudible gasp and turned to face her sister. “Give me my glove!”, she requested, slightly panicked. _ __   
__   
_ However, Anna did not give her the glove - she began to walk backwards, taking tentative steps, holding the glove as if it were a valuable treasure. However, Jason noticed a desperate look in her teal eyes. “Elsa, please...  _ **_please_ ** _! I can’t live this way!”, cried the girl, beginning to attract the attention of the guests. _ __   
__   
_ “ _ **_Then go_ ** _!”, the queen exploded, causing the whole room to silence as she watched the discussion between the two girls. Anna's face took on a pained expression as Elsa turned and started walking toward the door. _ __   
__   
_ “What did I do to you?”, Anna screamed, moving from despair to anger in a matter of a few seconds. Jason felt a shiver run down his spine - usually, he only felt it when the situation was about to get out of control. _ __   
__   
_ “Enough, Anna!”, cried Elsa, trying to impose her authority, and attracting various whispers from the guests. As the shiver grew stronger, Jason decided to act, starting to walk toward the two sisters, desperately trying not to release his ability. _ __   
__   
_ “NO! Why? Why did you abandon me? Why did you move away from the whole world?  _ **_What are you so afraid of_ ** _?” The princess shot in a furious, desperate tone. Jason hastily stepped forward before attempting to catch the monarch's attention - he was sure something was about to happen. "Maj..." _ __   
__   
_ “I said, ENOUGH!”, Elsa bellowed, striking the air with her hand - the ice left her fingers like an arrow from a bow, forming a line of icicles on the ground. _ __   
__   
_ A deathly silence filled the hall - broken by a little man with white hair and a monocle, who stepped forward and, pointing to the queen, screamed. “Monster!” _ __   
__   
_ Seeing the frightened expression on the queen's face, Jason stopped walking towards her, and turned to the little man - the exile felt a shiver as he recognized it. _ __   
__   
_ This was one of the main allies of the Southern Isles, and one of the leaders of the Westside Island invasion, as well as the Doctor's patron. _ __   
__   
_ The Duke of Weselton. _ __   
__   
_ Feeling an overwhelming rage over him, Jason ignored that he was in a crowded room, and as soon as he saw his way clear, he released his ability for the first time in days - and for the first time, of his own free will, in a year. A collective gulp took hold of the dignitaries when, without warning, Jason advanced on the duke with supernatural speed, leaving a blue blur in the air. _ __   
__   
_ Furious, he grabbed the Duke by the throat and lifted him into the air in two seconds, whispering quietly. “The only monster here is you... Weaselton.” _ __   
__   
_ “We-Weselton! It's Weselton!”, stammered the duke, struggling in the air, his neck being slowly tightened by the royal-blue-haired man. _ __   
__   
_ Before he could say anything else, a flash came from the middle of nowhere, blinding everyone in the room - yet Jason was busy, choking the man who had helped destroy his life and his family, until... _ __   
__   


* * *

“Mr. Smith? Mr. Smith, wake up!”, exclaimed a voice, making Jason come out of his stupor.

Blinking frantically, he glanced sideways, though he only saw the same white flash from seconds ago - until Kai and Rose slowly entered his field of view, both with frightened and worried expressions.   
  
"What ... what? What was it ... what happened? "He stammered nervously - he could still feel the veins of the Duke of Weselton's neck in his hands, even if that was, as it turned out, a hallucination.   
  
"I’m asking the questions here, Mr. Smith!”, exclaimed the old sea-wolf, very nervous. “You look dazed, and began to murmur a series of incomprehensible words, Lord Chamberlain Kai and I feared you might be ill!"   
  
What none of them knew was that, at that moment, two jewels that were tucked away in two leather handbags, both neatly hidden in Jason's luggage, were beginning to shine at that moment.   
  
“I... I don’t know what happened”, Jason murmured, putting his hands to his head. “I was looking at the streets next to the castle, thinking about the things that had happened until I got here, when my sight turned white... Suddenly... it seemed like I was... I do not know, in another life or in another dimension.”   
  
He decided not to tell Kai and Rose what he had seen in his vision. Not only because this might raise unwanted questions about his abilities, but he simply could not explain to the Lord Chamberlain how Princess Anna, who died more than ten years ago, was there.   
  
“And what... and what did you see, Mr. Smith?”   
  
“I don’t know, I've seen some half-blurred figures... it's as if I'm seeing an incomplete picture coming to life, Lord Kai”, Jason lied unabashedly. Seeing that both the Sea Diamond’s captain and the Lord Chamberlain accepted his explanation without question, he decided to change the subject. “But anyways ... where are we?”   
  
“In the courtyard of the castle, Mr. Smith. We just arrived, so it's only a matter of time before we go to the Throne Room…”   
  
“...better known as the ‘Wailing Wall’”, concluded Rose, which caused Jason to look at him with a confused expression and Kai wince disdainfully. “As the late king and queen listened to several people a day, including many complaints and disputes for various reasons, the population began to refer to the Throne Room by that name. Not that the nobility and the castle officials like it.”   
  
Kai did not respond to Rose's comment - instead, he opened the carriage door and motioned for the two travelers to leave the vehicle.   
  
The soldiers who had accompanied the carriage on their way through the Royal City formed an honor guard, while Kai escorted Jason and Rose to the castle’s front door; making a sign for the two to wait, the Lord Chamberlain stepped forward and knocked four times on the door.   
  
Thirty seconds later, it opened, allowing the trio to enter the massive building.   
  
Jason felt a chill creep down his spine as he entered the castle - this was a clear sign that something very important was about to happen...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's note: Well, at last, I decided to update early... but, first of all, thank you for all the feedback in chapter 1! I just hope that this chapter matches your expectations, since we got a few more questions, especially in the vision scene.
> 
> And, in next chapter, a new character will enter (at least, oficially) this story - Elsa. And it's time to deliver the sad news... so, expect a lot of ice and frost in the Throne Room. And, some people asked me about Anna, since I stated explicitly that she's dead. Well, don't worry, because Anna will enter this story, with a major role - but I have to say that her role is not the expected of her.
> 
> See you next sunday or monday!


	3. The Lady and the Tramp

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: all the characters, locations and items in this work are trademarked by Disney, Sega and Ubisoft, unless noted otherwise. All original characters, if not related to existing characters, are owned by the author.

Jason and Captain Rose had to wait to be heard.

As no one in Arendelle knew of the death of the monarchs - everyone on the _Sea Diamond_ who had witnessed the conversation between Jason and Berget, had been persuaded not to spread the word -, Kai had rearranged Princess Elsa's agenda (although, at that moment, she would attend as regent) so the two travelers were the last ones to be heard today.

Jason took advantage of the moment to rummage through his luggage, searching for the leather bag with the violet Chaos Emerald that had been delivered by Berget.

It was easy to find it, as the crocus coat of arms made it clear where the jewel he was looking for was, since he had no intention of getting rid of the white jewel he'd stolen from the Egghead - he knew what the Chaos Emeralds, when assembled, were capable of doing, and if he kept at least one in his possession, he could avoid a catastrophe. Even more so, considering the legends he had heard in his personal hell that was his year in the Doctor's lab… Especially one related to the mythological Angel Island.

"Mr. Smith, Captain Rose", Kai called, pulling Jason out of his thoughts - the Lord Chamberlain had opened the door and halfway into the waiting room. "Her Royal Highness is finalizing a meeting with the Council, she is already aware that you are awaiting an audience. You will be the next to be heard."

They both nodded, and Kai to returned to the Throne Room. Rose, who looked a bit uncomfortable at the prospect of meeting the princess, turned to Jason and asked. "What are your plans at Arendelle, Mr. Smith?"

Jason looked at Rose for a few seconds before answering. "Honestly, I don't know, Captain... I'm most likely going to try and enter the Hunters' Guild, since my father taught me how to hunt when I was a child. Now that my family is in the hands of the Southern Isles, I need to get a job to survive - that is, as long as the princess accepts my application for political asylum. "

Jonathan Rose nodded before speaking. "Given all that has happened, and who your family is, I believe your request will be accepted without major problems."

"Thank you for your support, Captain. That means a lot to me", Jason said, giving the sailor a brief smile as he played with his luggage. "And you, will you continue to route between Arendelle and Corona? Or do you have other plans?"

"Well, I don't always stay on this route, I alternate between routes that pass through Soleanna, Empire City, Mazuri, Avalor, Spagonia, Arendelle and Shamar, so... I can say that this work allows me to travel and experience the world, but…"

"But?" Asked the young man, raising a bluish eyebrow.

"But I've left my youth behind, and I think it's time to retire... my daughter, Amelia, whom my wife and I call Amy, is already a grown woman, and she's about to get married. I've missed too much of my daughter's life during my service in the Corona Royal Navy and the Merchant Navy after I was discharged from the military service, so... I think it's time to retire, but I still have to talk to the board of the Merchant Navy to establish deadlines."

"I see, Captain. I…" Jason began, before being interrupted by the clatter of doors being opened and Kai's deep, resounding voice in his most professional tone.

"Her Royal Highness will receive you now, sirs."

Jason and Rose nodded as they got up and walked to where the Lord Chamberlain was. "Remember what we have agreed upon, I will introduce you both and tell the reason for the hearing. Just answer what the princess asks, so that we don't run the risk of the news being said before the right time."

"Is there ever a right time to tell someone that their parents died?", muttered Jason to himself, incredulous. The two nodded once more, and Kai opened the gate for the two of them to enter the Throne Room.

The exile blinked incredulously at the room: it was ample, decorated with crocus coats of arms, as well as portraits of men and women wearing military uniforms - which would seem strange if Arendelle hadn't been the first country to allow female military service. Jason assumed the pictures depicted the deceased rulers. A wooden throne, also decorated with the crocus, was at the back of the room, which was much like the room in which he had been in his vision - though the Throne Room was reasonably smaller than the room where the ball occurred in his vision, or hallucination, he wasn't sure.

An eighteen-year-old woman sat on the throne, looking at the two strangers with some curiosity, although her posture conveyed seriousness and composure. She had platinum-blond hair tied in a French braid, and a pale blue dress that seemed to be shining, reflecting the rays of the evening sun. Her blue eyes, almost heavenly in tone, were glowing with anticipation about the possible significance of this audience.

_She is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful women I have ever seen_ , Jason thought, rushing forward not to be left behind by Rose and Kai. When the three men came within ten feet of the throne, the Lord Chamberlain stepped forward and, with a respectful bow, and announced. "Your Royal Highness, I present Captain Jonathan Rose and Mr. Jason Ryan Smith."

"Mr. Smith, Captain Rose, Your Royal Highness and Regent, Princess Elsa of Arendelle."

The two foreigners bowed to the princess; as he lifted his head again, Jason could not help noticing how close Elsa was to the queen that had appeared in his vision; the only difference was the braid - in the vision, it was well crafted and pinned to her head, while the young woman he was seeing was using a simpler French braid in comparison.

Another thing he could see, paying close attention, was a small shadow in her eyes. A shadow that existed on the other Elsa, though for different reasons.

It was the mourning that insisted on not disappearing.

"Welcome to Arendelle, gentlemen, how can I be of service to you?", greeted the princess in English as perfect as that spoken by her Lord Chamberlain - _apparently_ , Jason thought, _I will not have to do translation work during the hearing_.

Rose glanced sideways at Kai before nodding; fulfilling what had been agreed upon, the Lord Chamberlain began to speak. "Captain Jonathan Rose is the commander of a ship, the Sea Diamond, which belongs to the Coronan Merchant Navy; one of the routes made by the vessel connects the Royal City of Arendelle to Helios, capital of Corona. Two days ago, when the ship was already on its last few miles before arriving at Arendelle, a castaway was sighted, holding onto a piece of a ship that had sunk that dawn."

"Yes, and... and what does this have to do with our kingdom?" Elsa asked, not understanding the reason for this audience, which had been requested at the last minute. "If the castaway is from Arendelle, it would be better to wait for my parents to return from the official visit to Spagonia... although they should arrive any minute now, so I do not understand what you have to talk about."

Kai swallowed hard before continuing his narrative. "The castaway was a native of Arendelle, and that was where Mr. Jason Ryan Smith had been called for, since, according to Captain Rose, he knows several languages. The man spoke about a ship that had been caught the night before by a storm, and he was the only survivor... before he died right there, on the deck of the Sea Diamond. According to Captain Rose, Mr. Smith and the ship's doctor, Dr. Wolfgang Petersen, the castaway suffered from hypothermia, but died from a pulmonary hemorrhage, as his lungs were pierced by the ribs."

Elsa blinked, clearly confused, before turning to Rose. "I'm sorry to hear that, Captain, but I still do not understand what the Crown has to do with this shipwreck. If the man was from the Royal Navy, this matter is to be dealt with by the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and if he was from the Merchant Navy, it's a matter to deal with the Navy's board. Unless he's a Royal Guard, then the Crown would be directly involved."

Knowing that this was exactly the case, Jason looked sideways at Kai and waved a hand indicating that he would like to speak. With an indecipherable expression, the Lord Chamberlain nodded, and Jason turned to the monarch before speaking for the first time. "Your Royal Highness... my name is Jason Ryan Smith, I was aboard the ship and I helped rescue the castaway. I would like to clarify a doubt. "

The princess nodded slightly, allowing him to continue his line of reasoning.

"How many Royal Guards are out of the castle at the moment?"

If the princess was even more confused than ever by this question, she did not show it - instead she put her hand to her chin and assumed a thoughtful position for a few seconds. "In addition to a detachment of 40 men and women accompanying my parents on their official visit to Spagonia, each ambassador abroad has the right to bring a Royal Guard to their team. But... right, now I have the following question, Mr. Smith: What do you actually want to know?", she asked, in a determined tone, which didn't show any objections.

Jason swallowed hard. Now, he would have to say what had happened, since there was no chance of an evasive answer without annoying the soon-to-be-queen. Glancing at Rose and Kai, he nodded (and received two head-nods from the old sea-wolf and the Lord Chamberlain in response) before turning to Elsa. "Your Royal Highness... or, rather, _Your Majesty_ , the castaway we rescued and who died aboard the Sea Diamond is Lieutenant-Colonel Thomas Berget of the Royal Guard, who was aboard HMAS Vålerenga."

The princess's eyes widened, beginning to link the dots.

"He told me that the ship was struck by a storm three nights ago, and that it sunk due to the violence of the waves, which broke the vessel in half."

"No, please, not what I'm thinking," the princess murmured anxiously as a thin layer of frost began to spread around the throne. Turning his attention to his luggage, Jason withdrew the leather pouch with the Chaos Emerald.

"According to Berget, the king and the queen threw a bottle with a message to the sea before delivering to him a leather bag with Arendelle's supreme jewel for security reasons. Before he could reach a lifeboat, however, a wave threw the lieutenant into the ocean, and he returned to the surface in time to see the ship being broken and sunk with all the people who were on board... "

The ice continued to spread through the throne room, at the same time Elsa's blue eyes began to fill with tears; she kept murmuring "not true..."

"...including your parents, Your Highness. According to Berget, there were no survivors, and three days have passed since then, which makes survival chances almost impossible. I... I'm sorry", Jason finished; in the next second, he felt a snowflake landing in his face.

In a few seconds, the Throne Room became a winter wonderland - it was covered by a layer of ice and frost from the ceiling to the floor, and a thin but persistent snow fell upon the room.

"Your Highness?" Kai stammered, approaching the future monarch. "Wh... what can I do?"

When Elsa spoke again, her voice was devoid of any emotion. "Alert the council and begin the funeral proceedings. We will not have bodies to bury, but the memories of my parents will be respected nonetheless... and, as regent, I decree an official mourning of thirty days."

Kai nodded, before asking... with some fear. "And as for Captain Rose and Mr. Smith? The captain has his ship, but Mr. Smith fled from Westside Island, which, as you may recall, was occupied about a year ago by the Southern Isles and Weselton."

"My family was taken as a prisoner to the Southern Isles, Your Highness, and I spent a year imprisoned in Westside, under the yoke of a Weselton scientist. It was a few weeks ago that I finally managed to escape, and I took a ship to Avalor - from there, I went to Corona and from there I took the Sea Diamond to Arendelle. I came here in order to apply for political asylum, but I do not think that's important now", he said, hugging himself in an attempt to protect himself from the cold.

Elsa did not say anything for several minutes - she seemed to be staring at the three men, but a more thoughtful person would realize that her mind was gone. The intensity of the snow increased in the meantime, making Jason hug himself tighter - the heavy robe which he'd put on as the ship docked at Arendelle helped to reduce the feeling of intense cold, but it was not enough.

"Kai, prepare a guest wing room for Mr. Smith, and make sure he's well taken care of during his stay at the castle. Prepare an escort to accompany Captain Rose back to his ship so that we can bring Lieutenant Berget's body back to receive due respect from his family and friends. And tell the heralds that my parents' death must be announced throughout the country, the mourning period begins from the moment they inform each city", said Elsa, in the same emotionless tone she had assumed from from the moment she learned that her parents had died; at the same time, the snow was decreasing in intensity.

Glancing briefly at the two foreigners, the monarch turned to Kai. "The hearing is over, gentlemen, I... I'm retiring to my room. Mr. Smith, the Lord Chamberlain will take you to your quarters, and Captain Rose, a detachment will be selected to accompany you to your ship." She rose from the throne, with an indecipherable expression. "Gentlemen."

The three bowed before turning to leave the Throne Room. When Kai finally closed the door after Jason and Rose left the room, the tears that Elsa had been holding up until now began to run down the princess's pale face.

The snow, which had stabilized, began to grow again in intensity until it became a storm occupying the entire Throne Room - however, the monarch's heart had been destroyed by an even greater storm.

First, her sister. Now, her parents. She was completely alone.

* * *

Hours later, Jason was in the room that had been designated for his stay in the castle, until he had the hearing with the princess about his request for political asylum. The young man had been lying on the bed for almost an hour, staring at the Chaos Emeralds he held in each of his hands - with the princess's intense reaction to the death of her parents, the return of Arendelle's supreme jewel had been completely forgotten.

However, it was nothing that could not be resolved without further complications.

The biggest problem, however, was whether his asylum request would be accepted - he really wanted to stay in Arendelle, no matter how much he knew his cousin would welcome him in Soleanna.

In fact, he was sure she would want to kill him when she discovered that he had moved to the far north of the world, not to the Mediterranean.

However, it was better this way: not only could he rebuild his life unnoticed, but there were also less chances of meeting agents of the Doctor - after all, most of the Westside Island refugees had moved to the country, trying to start their lives from scratch after the Southern Islers' and Weseltonian's invaded their island.

And considering all that had happened during his escape from the laboratory, it was no surprise that the Egghead was desperate to capture him again… and the white jewel he had stolen during the escape.

And the worst thing is that the Doctor knew absolutely everything about his family, which made refuge in Soleanna a high risk bet.

Jason let out a sigh - it would not do any good to mumble the possibilities of what might happen if he had caught another ship in the port of Helios, what mattered was that he was safe and sound in Arendelle. And if everything went according to plan, very soon he would begin working in his new profession.

On the way to his room, Kai had said that the Arendelle Hunters' Guild was not very large, but they were always willing to accept the admission of a new member as long as he proved he had the skills necessary for that profession.

The word was that the guild leader, Adéwalé, was one of the toughest men the country had ever known - a former slave who had fled the captivity in the West Antilles years ago and fought tooth and nail to reach a land where slavery had been abolished decades ago. Now he was the most skillful hunter among his peers, and a fairly strict man in the choice of a possible apprentice - he only accepted the best among the best.

That said, it was not surprising that he had only had three apprentices over the twenty years he was in the Guild - most of the young people joining the organization were trained by other experienced hunters.

Therefore, being trained by Adéwalé was a real honor - one that Jason was going to achieve, even if he had to kill and die for it.

And no, he was not saying that as a figure of speech - after all, what was one more death to a man who had wanted posters scattered all over Weselton, accused of fifteen homicides during the flight from the laboratory?

Jason came to the conclusion that thinking about what-ifs wouldn't do any good at the moment - it was best to try to rest until the actual funeral. Only after his next hearing with the princess could he try to decide what to do about his old life.

"Well, Kai told me that all I had to do was ring a bell at the entrance of the room for a servant to take care of me. Let's see if this system works", muttered Jason, depositing the Chaos Emeralds on a nightstand beside the bed and getting up to the door, where a small bell was attached to a frame on the wall with a cord attached to the instrument.

Pulling the cord, Jason could not help but notice one thing: the bell was made of ice, with a snowflake decorating the same. Two minutes after the sound of the bell echoed through the bedroom and down the hall, the door opened, revealing a tall, thin woman in a green dress - the same green as Kai's clothing. She appeared to be middle-aged, with her brown hair beginning to silver, and a kind smile on her face - which, however, did not reach her eyes.

Jason guessed that she already knew the fate of Agdar and Idunn - however, as the news of the death would only be announced the next day, it was still not possible to wear black clothes in mourning.

"Good night Sir. My name is Gerda, I am the Chief Maid of the Royal Castle of Arendelle. How can I help you?"

"Well, ma'am-or miss?", Jason asked, scratching the back of his neck in embarrassment.

"Mrs. Amundsen, since Kai Amundsen, the Lord Chamberlain, is my husband", replied Gerda softly.

Still embarrassed by the previous question, Jason decided to explain the reason for the call. "Well, Mrs. Amundsen, it's just that I arrived in Arendelle a few hours ago, and I have not taken a shower yet, so…"

"I understand, Mr. Smith. Well, don't worry, I'll send a maid to prepare a bath, do you prefer hot, warm, or cold water?"

"Well... warm, I guess. Thank you very much", said the exile. Gerda bowed slightly before turning around and leaving the room, probably to delegate the task of preparing a warm bath in the bathroom adjacent to the room for a maid.

Half an hour later, the refugee was preparing himself to enter the bath after thanking the maid who had filled it with warm water, as he had requested. His attention had been drawn to the fact that, even though she was only fourteen years old (yes, he had asked her age), she already knew what to do, which meant experience.

It was only after she had explained that in the castle, most of the staff began to work in their respective professions as a child, which he understood because this did not seem to catch anyone else's attention.

Because if this happened in the coastal palace on Westside Island, a few eyebrows would certainly rise - but that was the price of moving to a country on the other side of the world; cultural shock.

Nothing he couldn't get used to.

Taking off his traveling tunic, Jason noticed the two tattoos that adorned his shoulders: on the left side, was a blue hedgehog, curled up in a ball; on the right was a rose of the winds. According to his parents, those tattoos had been there since he was a baby, and no one had a clue as to how they had appeared there.

What was even stranger about the drawings is that when they appeared, they were very small; as Jason grew older, the tattoos grew larger and larger, until they acquired their current shape.

At least he prayed that Arendellian society would not have the same prejudices about tattoos that existed in other countries - he had already read that in places like Nihon, having such a design was a statement of a dark past; according to a book he had read, each criminal group had its own tattoos, indicating place of origin, gang status, years spent in jail, religious beliefs, and other information. Basically, tattoos formed a report about the person who used them.

During the time he was immersed in the bathtub, he noticed that as much as he was willing to live in Arendelle, overcoming the cultural shock would not be easy - travelling to Soleanna would have been calmer in comparison because of the similarities between the cultures of the two countries.

He only hoped that, over the years, that change would weigh less for him.

* * *

"Father?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you think…"

"What, my son?"

"Do you think we'll ever find my sister one day?"

The man sighed softly at this question; since his wife and youngest daughter had died, his eldest son always asked at irregular intervals whether they would ever find the middle daughter, whose body had never been found in the ruins of the village in which they lived.

The fact that there was no body gave him hope, but, as it had been five years since the massacre - from which he and his son had only escaped because they had traveled to harvest ice on a frozen lake a few miles away the day before -, the father saw his prayers losing more and more strength; even the comforting words of his friends, the "love experts," as his son called them, did not soothe him as they had in the first few months.

"Kristoff, my son, the gods know that I would love as much as you would that we could find my daughter, my Anna Maria... but it has been so long since Mylai, and... sometimes I wanted to believe in the sun god of Time of Soleanna, and to be able to return five years in time to rescue my family."

"But, Papa…"

"Kris, my son... please do not talk about it any more. At least not for today", murmured the blond man, turning his face away so that his son would not see the tears in his teal eyes - the same eyes as his missing daughter.

Sometimes, Jonas Bjorgman wondered if one day this pain would pass - no matter how Grand Pabbie assured him, the fact is that every time he approached the ruins of Mylai, or saw any of the objects belonging to his wife, or his youngest daughter, he felt his heart shatter a little more.

Instead of diminishing, the pain only grew more and more.

Glancing at his son, who was picking up the ice-cutting saw while being watched by his pet reindeer, Sven, Jonas wondered if he could bear the pain in time to teach Kristoff all he knew about the profession of ice harvester - at the age of eighteen years, his son had a natural talent for this work, but Jonas always said that the work of a master was only completed the day he had nothing else to teach his apprentice - and that day still had not arrived.

Besides, Kristoff also had his own demons to deal with - Jonas knew that he and Anna had always been close together since she was born, thirteen years ago. The first time she'd crawled, she'd gone to her older brother, the first word she'd said was "Kris," all the firsts of her life had been with Kristoff - _the two had a connection deeper than many people could dream of_ , Jonas thought.

It wasn't that the young man didn't love his mother and his younger sister, quite the opposite - but because of all that he and Anna had done together, the disappearance of the older Bjorgman girl had been harder for the younger ice harvester.

"Papa?"

"Yes, my son?"

"The equipment is ready, shall we? That guild said they could wait, but not for long."

"Okay, Kris, get the sled on Sven and go ahead. I'll be right over", said Jonas; after nodding, Kristoff went to do what his father had requested. As he watched his son and his reindeer headed for the partially frozen lake - it would only be 100% frozen in two months, at best - Jonas looked up at the starry sky and murmured. "I don't know who is listening to me at this moment, but I ask, from the bottom of my heart, that... that if my daughter, if my Anna Maria Bjorgman, is alive, that she can come back to us... that I want to see the freckled face of my little girl before I die."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: A very angsty chapter I have to concede... but it was necessary for the story. And we will have new characters entering the next chapter, including the last of the three main characters - but she has a few changes...
> 
> And, with this chapter, I've decided to completely leave the scheduled updates - by now, every time I complete an advanced chapter (by now, I've completed chapter 15 - Stupid and Contagious), I will update this fic as an intermediate chapter will be translated and sent for proofreading (Chapter 12 - 16 plus 4 equals 20).
> 
> By the way, I love getting feedback (as every writer does), so, if you could be so kind, please leave a review, it's what fuels me to continue with this story - knowing that you are reading and sending feedback about it.
> 
> See you next chapter!


	4. Requiescat in Pace

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: all the characters, locations and items in this work are trademarked by Disney, Sega and Ubisoft, unless noted otherwise. All original characters, if not related to existing characters, are owned by the author.
> 
> Special disclaimer: this chapter is dedicated to Arendellecitizen, whose drabbles - especially one - inspired part of this plot.

**Chapter 4 - Requiescat in Pace**

The next night, a solitary figure sneaked through the deserted streets of the Royal City of Arendelle.

With a black leather hood shielding her face from the icy wind of the October night, she leaned against the wall of a house and looked around to see if there were any patrols on the streets - even if the princess had not decreed a curfew for mourning, the majority of the city's taverns had closed the doors that same day, in respect to the memory of the deceased king and queen.

_Which is a pity_ , the figure thought, seconds before sprinting from one alley to another, getting closer to her target. _I need a drink to stay warm tonight_.

However, the lack of alcohol in her blood was also a blessing: it helped her stay focused on her target.

One of the damn bastards who had destroyed her previous life; if it wasn't her mother asking her to hide in the trunk... maybe she would not have found her _Herre_ , her mentor.

Maybe she would not even be alive anymore.

Shaking her head to dismiss these thoughts, the figure looked again to either side of the street before moving to another alley. She repeated this action three more times before she saw the two-storey blue house, built in Westphalian style, whose roof was covered with snow created by the crown princess' powers.

Future Queen Elsa.

This was one of the names that made her blood boil - even though she was still a teenager when her family was wiped off the map, she had her responsibility as a member of the Royal Family, to whom the Arendelle Armed Forces had made an oath.

But the dream of piercing the Royal Heart, which she had cherished since she had managed to understand everything which wasn't possible in her childhood, would have to be delayed for another time.

The sounds of footsteps caused the figure to freeze in a corner; slowly turning her head to the left, she could see a patrol of six soldiers coming towards the alley where she was hiding. Taking a deep breath, she brought her right hand up to the waist of the tunic she wore - exactly to the place where a channeled cinquedea was hidden.

That weapon had been presented to her by her mentor six months ago, when she had finished training; a coat of arms decorated the blade. And not only for aesthetic reasons - this was also a reminder of the cause for which she and her brothers and sisters had fought since they had been rescued from certain death.

On the left side of the robe was a dagger that had been forged by her four days earlier, in the workshop, hours before her departure for the Royal City. It was a simple, unidentified weapon, which would come in handy, since if it worked, she would not bring that weapon back to her hiding place.

Hearing the patrol's approaching footsteps, she tried to cringe against a barrel that had been dropped into the alley and hold her breath, breathing as little as possible.

However, to her relief, the soldiers completely ignored the alley where she was and went ahead, resuming the patrol. Returning the channeled cinquedea to her belt, the girl raised her eyes slightly above the barrel and waited until the military turned the corner, heading to the next street to continue the patrol.

Seeing that the coast was clear, she stepped out from behind the barrel and looked back at the blue house where her target lived.

She stood there for five minutes, planning what she would do to enter her target's room; the maid she had bribed two days earlier had said that a soldier stood at the base of the staircase leading into the room during the night, but that same man, an eighteen-year-old recruit, wasn't exactly the sharpest weapon in the armory; as long as she did not make too much noise, he wouldn't notice.

With a ghastly smile, the girl looked around again to make sure there was no one else around; it was only then that she went toward the house. As soon as she approached one of the windows, she started climbing - which, after all she'd ever seen and done in training, was a piece of cake for her.

In fact, the house offered so many spaces to climb that it was surprising that no one had noticed that. However, considering that Arendelle had never had a group specialized in this type of action, such as the faction to which the girl belonged, it was not a complete surprise that the houses were designed to resist the invasion of an external enemy - not an internal.

This brought to her mind a lesson taught by her master - that the most dangerous enemy is the one most ignored by his antagonist.

Cautiously, she opened the window and raised her eyes enough to see if anyone was inside. And, indeed, there was someone.

A single person was asleep in the king-sized bed, not having the slightest clue that an intruder had invaded what should be his place of refuge. The girl narrowed her eyes and scanned the room before closing the window gently; she waited for a few seconds to make sure no one had heard the noise of wood against wood.

She took advantage of the space between the window and the bed to accustom her eyes to the darkness of the room as she walked to where - she hoped - her target would be.

Her heart missed a beat as she stared at the pale face of the man lying on his back, his gray hair scattered across his face - this was one of the soldiers who had participated in the massacre, who had disgraced not only her life, but also the lives of her countrymen.

He was one of the leaders among all the military men who had been in the village - the girl knew that he had retired from the army about three years ago, with the rank of colonel, shortly after his wife died in a domestic accident, which explained the half-occupied king-sized bed.

Her sons and daughters were already married and with their own lives, which was a relief to the intruder - there were fewer people who would wake up in case of any noise.

Feeling the anxiety invade her stomach, the girl knelt in the empty space on the bed, which gave way slightly; then she removed her dagger, followed by a piece of greenish cloth, and carefully rolled it into a ball, placing it near the old man's half-open mouth.

Raising the dagger above her head, she glanced one last time at the soldier, before striking the weapon at his heart while putting the cloth against the old man's mouth to prevent him from screaming - which proved to be correct, since he awoke immediately as he felt the blade of the dagger pierce his heart.

"Good evening, Colonel Lars Mikkelsen," the girl murmured, with a wicked smile. She found this night to be quite fun.

* * *

Undoubtedly, meeting his wife again, even in a dream, was a very good thing.

After all, three years had passed since his beloved Beru had died, for a rather simplistic reason: she had slipped on the last step of a ladder and fell downstairs, suffering several serious injuries - which ended up taking her life.

At that time, Lars was commanding a military training facility in the northern provinces of Arendelle - upon receiving the news, he decided to leave the army for good, even with appeals from his superiors to continue; he was considered one of the most respected military officers by the High Command, even though part of the lower patents harbored a certain mistrust of him for his involvement in one of the darkest episodes in the country's military history.

However, Beru's death made him realize that he had spent a long time away from his family - of course, he had participated in important events such as births, weddings, birthdays, etc.

But he had lost all the simpler moments of his family life.

And after 30 years in the rigid Arendelle Royal Army's military routine, he could not recover those lost moments - but he could enjoy the rest of his life as the father he had never been.

So what Lars imagined when he had retired from military life was that he still had, at least, twenty years to live with his sons and daughters and their respective spouses and children.

So in addition to the pain when he felt the blade of the dagger hit his heart, and the shock of feeling his mouth being muffled by a piece of cloth while trying to scream, he could only feel a huge disappointment.

He could not live with his family as he would like.

"Who... who are you?", murmured the old soldier, his voice muffled by the cloth, trying to breathe as he felt the blood invade his airways. With difficulty, Lars looked into the teal eyes hidden by the hood as his attacker removed the cloth from his mouth.

"I'm Aeris. The last person you'll see or hear in this world", growled Aeris, twisting the dagger and making the man's body squirm. He tried to scream, but the pain was such that he just could not find his voice.

Considering the thickness of the walls, he thought, it would not do much good.

"I wonder what your role was in that damn massacre", Aeris commented as she stared at the blood that painted the man's clothes in red. "Was it you who set the temple on fire with all those children locked up? Or were you one of the four bastards who tied the greengrocer to four horses and made them walk in opposite directions, quartering the poor man? Or... were you one of the bastards who disgraced my mother and sister before killing them?"

"I... I…" muttered the old Mikkelsen, weakly. "I don't…"

"I watched it all, you know?", the girl murmured, her voice trembling with hatred. "My mother put me in a trunk when she realized what was happening, but she could not save my little sister. And I watched as twelve soldiers 'had fun' with them, ignoring their screams. This before they were stabbed in the chest and dropped there, dying of bleeding with each heartbeat, pumping the blood out of the body. So I do what I do, to avenge their deaths."

"Please, I…" he tried to speak, before being interrupted by the hooded girl.

"And I will not settle down until every one of those responsible has paid the price, that includes your dear princess."

"The princess... she hasn't... it's not her fault. She was a child when that happened!", exclaimed the former soldier, coughing blood in the process.

"It may be, but your king is dead. And it wasn't by my hands. So she will pay in her father's place. The princess will die by my hands, but not today."

Leaving the bed, she took four pieces of rope from the tunic and tied his hands and feet to the bed firmly, making it impossible for him to escape. Then she took the green cloth again and tied it to Lars's mouth before looking into their eyes and muttering. "Like my mother and my sister, you will be there, with the dagger stuck in your heart, causing you to lose blood with each heartbeat. So I suggest you enjoy your last moments and confess your sins to whatever God you believe in... although I doubt that he or she will forgive you."

The old man tried to speak again, but the gag in his mouth drowned out whatever sound he tried to utter. With a satisfied smile, Aeris gave the soldier a mocking bow before turning to a mirror. Lowering her hood, and ignoring the colonel's increasingly choppy breath, she looked at a young face, which had witnessed only thirteen summers - and yet she had already been responsible for the deaths of five people involved in the massacre.

She knew that this was a life no one wanted or desired, and she doubted her father and brother would approve of what she was doing - yet she was sure that all this bloodshed was worth it, since every death of a soldier involved in the slaughter would avenge not only her mother and her sister, but every one of the inhabitants of Mylai who had been killed for no reason at all.

Besides, she had never seen her father and brother again - her mentor, as soon as he had rescued her, took her to a farm a few miles north of the village where she had been reunited with other survivors of the massacre. In a matter of days, they were all embarking on a rigorous training regimen, as their savior had offered them the chance to avenge their relatives and friends - an offer they had all accepted with great pleasure.

Indifferent to the old colonel's muffled gagging, Aeris moved a hand to one of her twin braids that came down over her shoulders; the blond-platinum lock that stood out from her strawberry-blond, almost red, hair, always attracted people's attention - one of the reasons why she always wore the hood on her missions, since she was easily recognizable if any witnesses saw the locks.

Tears rose in her eyes as she remembered her mother saying that these strands were a reflection of a past life - by all the gods, to this day she still couldn't comprehend the entirety of the pain that the absence of her mother and her little sister provoked.

Pain and anger - the latter, directed at people like Lars Mikkelsen, who continued writhe in agony in his bed, getting more bloodstained by the minute.

Taking a deep breath and wiping the tears from the freckled face, Aeris put the hood back on her head and walked towards the window, raising it once more. That's when she turned to the retired colonel for the last time. "Maybe I'll only know what happened to you the day I leave this world, too. But by then, I'll be happy, knowing that you also suffered before you died, even though it was only a fraction of what my mother and sister suffered."

And with that, Aeris left the Mikkelsen house, leaving behind a dying, bloody man; she only allowed herself to relax several minutes later when she was already on the street leading to one of the houses belonging to her mentor, one of the safe hiding places for her and her brothers and sisters. After entering the safe house ans sitting in one of the armchairs, Aeris lowered her hood once more and began to breathe slowly, letting the tension and adrenaline of the mission dissipate.

She still remembered the first time she had taken a life - she had come to the safe house completely destroyed inside, feeling horrible for killing a person. Her mentor, however, had helped her understand that yes, killing a person was never easy, and that it was never socially correct, but it was morally right - even more so if she remembered everything the military had done in Mylai five years earlier.

Gradually, and with the help of her master and her brothers and sisters, she had become an experienced assassin - increasingly ruthless in dealing with her targets. Today, the name of Aeris, which she had adopted upon entering the Brotherhood, was greatly feared in Arendelle's underworld. However, when she was not on missions, or even some activity related to her work, she attended by her birth name, which was known only in the group.

And by her father and brother.

As Aeris wiped away the tears that threatened to fall; she only prayed that one day she would find them. And that, even if they didn't agree with her profession, that they at least understood.

For they were her family. The people she loved the most. And whose opinions she valued even more than those of her mentor.

* * *

Seven days of absolute mourning had passed, Jason noted, as he packed up his luggage to leave the castle.

The day before, a funeral ceremony in honor of King Agdar and Queen Idunn had been held on top of a hill in the vicinity of the Royal City; although the bodies of the sovereigns had sunk with HMAS Vålerenga and all who were on board, two enormous stones had been erected on the hill with runic inscriptions describing the lives and deeds of the deceased monarchs.

As the last member of the Royal Family still alive, Elsa had attended the funeral, which had been conducted by a Nordic priest and attended by the nobles of the kingdom; Jason, for his part, had taken part in a tribute aboard the Sea Diamond, alongside Captain Rose and the passengers and crew on board the ship when Thomas Berget had been located.

The body of Arendelle's Royal Guard, in turn, had been veiled and buried with military honors the day after the hearing with the princess, at a ceremony attended by Jason and Rose, as well as Berget's relatives, friends and fellow soldiers.

Jason still remembered Berget's wife, holding the hand of a four-year-old girl with an incredible resemblance to the lieutenant-colonel, thanking him and Captain Rose for having rescued her husband's body and given the family the chance to to bid him farewell.

After putting the last change of clothes in his luggage, Jason looked at the leather bag with the purple Chaos Emerald; he had not had the chance to hand it over to the Princess since the hearing, because Elsa was too busy with the preparations for her parents' funeral, as well as Council meetings to elect a regent who would rule the country in partnership with young crown princess until she reached the age of 21, the minimum age established by law for the young woman to be crowned.

From what the exile learned, thanks to the castle's gossip network, the nobles had quarreled among themselves to take over the post, which would generate much influence and power during its existence - but Elsa had waited until the tempers were exalted to the maximum, each nobleman fighting for the name of his preference, before suggesting the name of Lord Chamberlain Kai as regent of Arendelle during his minority, as a name of consensus. Since, by now, the counselors were exhausted after so many quarrels and arguments, Kai's name was unanimously accepted.

Jason could not stop thinking, since he'd heard the news, in Elsa's cleverness; even in mourning for the death of her parents, she had manipulated the meeting subtly so that the name of her preference was chosen, since, because she was still a minor, she still did not have all the political powers.

Besides, it was always better to persuade the council to stay with her: after turning 21, Elsa could legislate on her own, but opposing her counselors explicitly could put her power at risk.

Having allies was what made the difference - but it was nothing Jason did not already know, knowing the power system in Westside and Soleanna was in the hands of just a few people.

Now, after a week of living in the castle, as he waited for the end of the funeral tributes and contacted the leaders of the Hunters' Guild to schedule his recruitment tests, which would be supervised by the guild leaders, Jason was ready to return to a more rustic, but more welcoming environment, just like the old Smith's family home.

Before that, however, he had to fulfill Lieutenant Berget's last request and deliver the Supreme Jewel to the princess. The white Chaos Emerald was stored in the bottom of his baggage, and he hoped it would be in his possession for a long time, for the good of the whole world.

A knock on the door roused him from his thoughts; putting his luggage over his right shoulder and adjusting his traveling tunic, so that it would not have any wrinkles before the audience, Jason stepped forward and opened the door, smiling at the woman in front of him. "Good morning, Mrs. Amundsen", greeted the blue-haired man.

"Good morning Mr. Smith, Her Highness asked me to accompany you to the Throne Room for the hearing", replied Gerda, who was wearing black robes this time, though she had a faint smile on her face. Jason nodded and started to walk beside the Chief Maid, who had assumed part of her husband's duties after he had been appointed Lord Regent.

In a matter of minutes, the exile was back in the Throne Room, where he had been a week before, accompanied by Kai and Rose; this time, however, the sea-wolf was not there - he had set sail late in the morning to Andalasia and Chu-Nan; the Lord Regent stood beside the princess (both of them wearing black clothes), talking to her; and Jason was accompanied by Gerda.

Upon seeing the pair, however, Elsa motioned for Kai to halt the conversation; as soon as Jason and Gerda bowed, the monarch began to speak. "Mr. Smith, I imagine that two matters of the previous hearing remained pending: his request for political asylum and the return of Arendelle's supreme jewel."

Jason raised his eyebrows, as he did not remember saying that he had the gem in the previous week's audience, but he understood everything by listening Kai clearing his throat; The Lord Regent had told everything to the monarch.

"Yes, it was delivered to me on the deck of the Sea Diamond by Thomas Berget, who asked me expressly to hand it over to you, Your Highness", Jason explained, taking the leather bag from the waistband of his tunic and extending it toward the throne.

Quickly, Kai took the bag and handed it to Elsa, who opened it to reveal the purple Chaos Emerald, which emitted a glow strong enough to illuminate the princess' face and highlight her icy-blue eyes.

"Mr. Smith, do you... do you know what this is?", asked the princess, with an indecipherable expression.

"Yes, Arendelle's supreme jewel... but I guess that's not the question being asked, am I right?" Elsa nodded, and Jason continued. "I had heard some legends during my childhood, but I only came to know that they were real in the year I was arrested in Westside …"

"So, I believe you understand if I ask you to keep it a secret? I know you are not an Arendellian citizen, but if you really intend to live in the country, I can make that request as your monarch… well, future monarch."

"Don't worry, Your Highness... I also have my reasons for keeping this secret", explained the blue-haired man. "Besides, it must be easier to present this stone as a supreme jewel than as a Chaos Emerald", he concluded, without a single reference to the white jewel that was carefully hidden in his luggage.

Jason had already decided that no one else could know that the stone was in his possession for safety reasons - this included the princess, even if she had an emerald of her own.

He was sure that only one other person knew that the emerald was in his possession, and he gave him shivers just thinking of his huge and fat figure: the Doctor.

_"Now... we need to know how far your powers can go, Mr. Smith, and I think a little more energy can help... Get a load of this!"_

His right hand trembled slightly with the memory of the electrical shocks he had to endure in the Doctor's lab.

"Well, since the subject of the supreme jewel is settled, Mr. Smith", said Elsa, as she returned the stone to the leather bag. "Now we have only to discuss the issue of your political asylum."

* * *

Hours later, Jason was on his way to the Hunters' Guild, carrying his luggage over his shoulder, with the political asylum guaranteed.

In fact, for the rest of the audience, he had talked about the events of the last year, beginning with his life before the invasion (although he had left parts of it out, for reasons of force majeure), the conquest of Westside by the coalition between the Southern Isles and Weselton, how his parents and his sister had been taken as slaves to the Isles while he had been taken as a potential guinea pig for scientific experiments to the Doctor's laboratory and how he had escaped - leaving aside only the theft of the white Chaos Emerald.

This had been the most tense moment of the audience, especially when explaining that he had murdered, in cold blood, fifteen of Weselton's scientists and soldiers stationed in the laboratory for the Doctor's protection.

For a second, Elsa seemed tempted to immediately close the hearing and refuse the asylum, but Kai had stepped up and defended the young man.

"Your Highness, taking into account what Mr. Smith had just reported us, he was alone, fighting an entire detachment of soldiers and a group of scientists who had orders to kill any fugitive. He knew that if he did not act in self-defense, he would be dead by then, so do not be so hard on him. Remember what happened to Frederick. "

It was enough to make Elsa flinch and, with a shaky nod, allow Jason to continue his story. The exile continued to speak, although a part of his mind was curious to know more about this Frederick - nevertheless, a characteristic chill in his spine made it clear that this was not a subject to be treated at that moment.

At the end of the story, the princess and Lord Regent asked a few more questions before asking the green-eyed exile to go into the waiting room with Gerda as they talked about the application for political asylum.

For half an hour, Jason paced in circles, sweating from pure jitteriness despite the pleasant autumn weather, as the Chief Maid tried to calm him down. However, Jason could not relax because of the fear that the soon-to-be-sovereign would have him deported if she refused the asylum request - even with Gerda guaranteeing that, even if it wasn't accepted, she would hardly do so after listening about the poor treatment dispensed by Weselton and the Southern Isles to the Westsiders.

Still, Jason only relaxed after Elsa and Kai summoned him back to the Throne Room, where they finally announced that the application for political asylum had been accepted. After thanking the crown princess and the regent effusively, he had said goodbye to them and Gerda before leaving the castle and beginning the journey to the Hunter's Guild.

With the hood over his head to protect himself from the cold wind, Jason stopped a few times to ask people if he was on the right path to the guild - and indeed he was, since after a few minutes, he reached a reasonably large, two-storey house on the outskirts of the Royal City.

The place, Jason thought, really seemed to be suitable for the Hunters' Guild: the house was on a property large enough to house a training ground where a man and a woman were practicing archery. In addition, he had heard from Kai that the place had, in addition to the two visible levels, an underground floor where a meat store was located - it was there, in that chilly environment, that the hunting products were stored, protected from the sun and heat, to prevent them from rotting.

In addition, the man had learned that the second floor of the house contained separate dorms for men and women - most hunters did not have enough money to buy their own home, so they slept at the guild.

A man was sitting on the floor in front of the Guild House, packing a handful of arrows into a quiver; he seemed to be preparing to go out on a hunt. His face was square, young-looking, with no beard or mustache; and the short black hair only enhanced the appearance of the man.

Seeing Jason approaching the guild, the man stood up and walked toward him; The exile from Westside Island noticed how tall he was - he must have been at least six feet high. "How can I help?"

"Good morning, my name is Jason Ryan Smith, I... I came to carry out the tests to try to become a hunter", answered the exile. Raising an eyebrow, the stranger spoke. "Are you the guy from Westside?" Jason nodded. "My name is Marshall Eriksen, follow me, please."

The two moved silently through the guild, and Jason realizing that he was being watched by some of the hunters on the scene - at least, they were curious looks, a blessing compared to the suspicious (and even hostile) looks he had received in Westside as he tried to reach the port without attracting the attention of Weselton's guards.

As they reached a door, Marshall motioned for Jason to wait before knocking on it; a loud, slightly hoarse voice ordered the hunter to come in, which he did, leaving the exile waiting.

A few minutes later, Jason was inside the room, which was a boardroom; Marshall was standing beside him, while three people, two men and a woman, stood at a table, consulting a map. One of the men and the woman must be siblings, Jason thought, for they were very similar - brown-haired, oval faces, and blue eyes, though their expressions were quite different.

The man's was quite lively, with his eyes radiating almost childlike happiness, while the woman's was quite serious and focused, as well as showing a slight irritation with her brother (or at least Jason thought he was).

But the man who drew Jason's attention was the other man: he was tall, with no hair on his black head, an earring with inscriptions in the native tongue of the West Antilles on his right ear. His body was quite muscular, after years of sugarcane plantations, and then working as a hunter in Arendelle; his robes had several pockets, plus a sword on the right side of his waist, and a dagger on the left side. To top it off, the heavy military-style boots gave him a stately look.

That was Adéwalé, the leader of the Arendelle Hunters' Guild.

Looking up, Adéwalé saw Marshall and Jason on the other end of the table, waiting for their turn to be called. With a smile, the hunter commented. "I liked the hair. Maybe because I don't have any, but I always imagined having a mane like that, but yours... it's quite different, maybe because I've never seen anyone with blue hair."

"Er... thanks, I guess", Jason replied awkwardly. "My name is Jason Ryan Smith…"

"... the political exile who fled from Westside Island", interrupted Adéwalé, leaving the map aside. "Yes, kid, Kai was here the day before yesterday, and he summarized your life right after you set up your tests with us."

"And speaking of that... where's the hunter I talked to? Because, do not get me wrong, but he said he wanted to be present for the tests."

"And I am", answered the brown-haired man, stepping forward and startling Jason as he hugged him tightly. "This is Olaf Poulsen and, as everyone in the Guild already knows, he loves warm hugs, so do not be surprised if he decides to embrace you out of nowhere. A breath of fresh air amidst the strains of the hunts", explained Adéwalé, before making a mention for the woman to approach. "This is Kristine Poulsen, she's Olaf's cousin, and do not let that cute little face fool you, she's as beautiful as she's ruthless. One of the most ferocious hunters in the Guild".

Kristine held out a hand to Jason, who shook it firmly. "Welcome to the guild, Mr. Smith", she greeted him.

"Cousin, please, you don't have to be so formal, this isn't a ceremony", Olaf grunted, rolling his eyes.

"Little cousin, not everyone is as loose as you are, so I thank you if you'd let me be the wild animal of the family." Kristine replied mockingly.

Jason looked at the exchange of "amenities" between the two cousins with a longing look - there was no way he could not remember the discussions with his sister when they were younger.

He imagined, for the umpteenth time, how she would be.

And he stopped almost immediately, for all the scenarios that came to his mind were too horrible to think about.

"Before you ask, yes, they do it at least twice a day - it's one of the sources of amusement for the hunters", said Marshall, so softly that only the blue-haired man could hear while Olaf and Kristine continued to argue.

"Very well", Adéwalé commanded, causing the Poulsen cousins to shut up. "This conversation is great, but we have business to deal with. Marshall, Olaf, Kristine, take your seats at the table", ordered the ex-slave; as soon as the three hunters had done what they had been ordered, the Guild leader turned to Jason and commanded, formally. "Grant us your name, place of origin and purpose, aspirant."

Taking a breath, the blue-haired exile approached the table. "My name is Jason Ryan Smith, a citizen of Westside Island and a political exile in Arendelle, and I have an interest in joining the Hunters' Guild."

"What is the reason you wish to join the guild?", Adéwalé asked.

"Survival, sir. I learned how to hunt early on with my family, and now that I'm in a strange land, I need to survive somehow."

"Are you willing to join the guild and take it upon yourself as your family, to protect and defend your friends, guard the secrets of your leaders, and work to aid the prosperity of our class and Arendelle?"

"Yes."

"Are you willing to train every day to perfect your skills, so you can become a hunter worthy of the title?"

"Yes."

"And, finally, are you willing to fight on behalf of the class to defend our interests?"

"Yes", said Jason, for the last time.

With a smile, Adéwalé held out his hand. "Well, Mr. Smith... or rather, Jason, welcome to the Arendelle Hunters Guild."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, the first act is done, but not the prologue - it still has three more chapters. Anna was introduced in this chapter, even if you hadn't noticed her. But, I can say that a more attentive person will notice some distinguishing details in this chapter, so... read it again if necessary!
> 
> In the next chapter, you will see what happens in the three years between the death of Elsa's parents and her coronation. Expect lots of different points of view!
> 
> Thanks to walard and Striga for their good work - I'd say that part of this fic is theirs. And to my brothers AceVermin143 and SeniorCrescent for supporting me.
> 
> See you next chapter!

**Author's Note:**

> Well, thank you very much for reading the chapter 1 of Ice Blue Blur: Open Your Heart. I hope you really enjoyed this story, because it was very fun to write this piece of work.
> 
> Maybe you are considering who Jason Ryan Smith is... don't worry, you will have an explanation in a few chapters. And it's a very challenging work - I'm a Brazilian, so, first, I write in portuguese, and only after that I translate it to english (with the help of doctor Google). Thanks a lot, by the way, to Walard and Strigga for proofreading this work!
> 
> And, before I forget, this is NOT an OC/Elsa ship - the main couple will be revealed very soon.
> 
> By now, I have 9 chapters already written, and 6 translated to english - currently, I'm writing chapter 10 (Royals), and... I don't have the slightest idea of how many chapters this fic will have, but... I hope you favorite it, follow it, and review it - I will update this story every monday - I hope.
> 
> Bye!


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